Zone D-5 located in Amador and Calaveras and portions of Alpine, El Dorado, Placer, Sacramento, San Joaquin, Stanislaus and Tuolumne counties. This is the southern end of the zone using the D3-5 tag and spans from Sacramento south to Ripon and east to Lake Tahoe.

As with most of California, there will be plenty of hunters in the field. Stay safe wear your blaze orange clothing. The D 3-5 tag is an over the counter 2-tag zone close to major urban areas. These factors lend to the crowded hunting conditions in addition to many of the non-hunting outdoor recreational enthusiasts.This is an extreme high use area. Plan on every campground to be full and every flat place in the forest be filled with a camp if you arrive after work. If recognized on the forest roads as a hunter expect to be shown the bird by passing recreational motorists. Do NOT leave valuables in camp unattended. They may not be yours when you get back.

The terrain in this zone changes drastically form east to west. It runs from the flat lands in the valleys in the west, up into the high mountains of the Sierra Nevadas in the east. The weather is usually hot and dry during archery and early general season, but thunderstorms are common. By the first 2 weeks of October significant storms may hit the Sierras. The chance for significant snowfall increases throughout the season. Hunting roads are not plowed right away, if at all, so carry a method of extraction for your vehicle if storms are forecast.

The vegetation is highly varied throughout Zone D-5 ranging from oak-woodland, mixed and montane chaparral, hardwood, hardwood-conifer, aspen and dense conifer to alpine habitats.

The Sierras are scenic mountains with large granite outcroppings.

In the last several decades there have been large wildfires in the Crystal Basin area (Cleveland Fire) and the Kings Fire to the west of Crystal Basin increasing the production of beneficial deer habitat in this area. In addition to these natural breaks in the forest the timber companies hold patchwork land within the forest and have done some clear cutting on their properties as well.

Major access to this zone is along Highways 49, 50, 88 and 4. Access to public lands in this zone is very good. On opening weekend of the season, most areas that have deer will have hunters. Due to the number of roads, there are very few areas where you can get away from people. Less accessible areas may have fewer hunters and thus provide better hunting.

Zone D-5 contains a mixture of both public and private lands however most of the public land is in the eastern portion of the zone. Public lands within Zone D-5 are administered by the El Dorado and Stanislaus National Forests. In the western portion of Zone D- 5, some public lands administered by the Bureau of Land Management exist, however these lands may be difficult to access.

Wilderness lands have been established within several areas of the El Dorado and Stanislaus National Forests. The Desolation, Mokolumne and portions of the Carson-Iceberg Wilderness Areas are accessible by hiking and pack stock. Public use of the wilderness is regulated by permit. Information on wilderness area restrictions and Wilderness Permits may be obtained by contacting the El Dorado or Stanislaus National Forests. Be warned, these are HIGH use wilderness areas by hikers and backpackers. Desolation WA boasts over 1 million visitors annually and access permits only allow you to hike main trails and camp within the region you are assigned. Park Rangers frequently travel the wilderness areas.

There are many USFS campgrounds within the hunt zone and these are shown on USFS maps. Informal camping is allowed on both USFS and BLM lands, but campfire permits are required to operate a camp stove/barbecue. Lodging available at Bear Creek Reservoir and private cabins located at Silver Lake.